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How to Reinstall Windows 10 Without CD or USB?

Wondershare Recoverit Authors

Jan 27, 2024 • Filed to: Answer Hard Drive Problems • Proven solutions

Is it possible to reinstall Windows 10 without its CD or a USB drive?

If you also have a similar thing in mind and can’t seem to reinstall Windows 10 on your computer, then this would be a must-read guide for you. Too many times, users wish to troubleshoot an issue with their system that demands the reinstalling of Windows. Thankfully, you can do it with an installer CD/USB drive or even without it. In this post, I will let you know how to reinstall Windows 10 without USB/CD and with these resources in detail.

Windows 10 Reinstalling Banner

Why You Might Need to Reinstall Windows 10?

While it is easy to learn how to reinstall Windows 10 without CD/USB, it is important to understand the possible reasons for this. Ideally, you might wish to reinstall Windows 10 on your system under these scenarios.


How to Reinstall Windows 10 Without a CD/USB?

Even if you don’t have a Windows installer CD or USB drive, you can still reinstall Windows 10 on your computer. For this to work, your computer should be running properly or you must have an existing Restore Point/System Image saved. If you also wish to reinstall Windows 10 without USB or CD, then go through these steps instead.

Take a Backup of your Windows 10 Data

Too many times, while reinstalling Windows 10 on the system, we end up losing our important data. To avoid that, you can use a dedicated application like AOMEI Backupper. Simply launch AOMEI Backupper on your computer and choose to back up the entire system, a partition, or specific folders.

Once the dedicated backup is maintained, you can later restore it to the location of your choice. This will help you avoid any unwanted loss of data as you reinstall Windows 10 without CD/USB drive.

Method 1. Reset your PC and Reinstall Windows 10

If you don’t have a system image stored, then you can reset your PC and reinstall Windows 10 on it. To do this, just go to its Settings > Update & Security > Recovery and click on the “Get Started” button under the “Reset this PC” option.

Reset PC Windows 10

This will launch a dedicated wizard where you can choose how to reset the computer. You can maintain a copy of your data or remove everything to do a complete factory reset.

Windows 10 Reset File Option

Apart from that, you can choose to download the updated copy of the firmware from the cloud or the local storage.

Windows 10 Reset Download OS

Lastly, the installer will ask you to keep or remove the preinstalled apps. Here, you can also enable the option to reinstall Windows 10 to get its fresh and updated copy.

Windows 10 Reset Reinstall Windows

Once you confirm your choice, just wait for a while, and let Windows reset your PC. When the setup is completed, your computer would be restarted with factory settings.

Method 2. Restore System Image and Reinstall Windows 10

Apart from resetting your PC, you can also choose to install a system image or extract a system restore point. Needless to say, this method to reinstall Windows 10 without USB/CD will only work if you have a system image stored in advance.

For this to work, you can just go to your system’s Settings > Update & Security > Recovery > Advanced Started and click on the “Restart Not” button.

Windows 10 Advanced Startup

This will simply restart your computer with the Advanced Startup options. From here, you can navigate to the “System Restore” or the “System Image Recovery” option if you have a system image or restore point stored.

Windows 10 Restore System Image

Later, you can follow a click-through wizard to restore the system and reinstall Windows 10 on it. In this way, anyone can reinstall Windows 10 without a CD or USB drive on their computers.

Method 3. Reinstall Windows 10 from a Partition Containing ISO File

Another way to reinstall Windows 10 without USB or CD is to use the partition containing an ISO file. You need to create a new partition to store the ISO file at first. Then run the Command Prompt and open the Windows setup from the partition.

But this method will format your computer completely.

More Related:
Backup Computer Before Factory Reset
Copy and Backup Files without Admin Rights


How to Reinstall Windows 10 With an Installer CD or USB Drive?

As I have mentioned above, you can reinstall Windows 10 without a CD/USB drive or with it. If you already have a Windows 10 installer media (like a CD or a USB drive), then you can install a fresh copy of the OS on your system. Since the process is the same for both a CD and a USB drive, let’s explore it in detail.

Step 1: Create an Installer Media (CD/USB drive)

If you don’t have an installer CD or USB drive for Windows 10, then you can create one. For this, you can install and launch the Windows Media Creation tool and just connect the CD/USB drive to your computer. Once you have launched the tool, simply choose to create an installer media to proceed.

Creating a Windows Installer Disk

While setting up the installer media, you can choose to create a fresh copy of the firmware and retain some of your files and saved settings.

indows Media Creation Wizard

Step 2: Change the Booting Sequence on your system

Once the installer media is created, you can restart your computer and keep pressing the BIOS key (like F2, F9, F10, DEL, ESC, or any other key). As the BIOS settings are launched, go to the Boot tab and change the sequence (setting the priority to the attached CD or the USB drive).

Windows BIOS Settings

Step 3: Reinstall Windows 10 on your computer

After changing the booting sequence, you can restart your computer again. This time, it will load the bootable media (from the CD or USB drive) instead. From here, you can choose to install a fresh copy of Windows 10 and set up your language/time preferences.

Windows Setup Wizard

Wait for a while as the installer would get ready and displays the following screen. To continue, you can just click on the “Install Now” button and follow a simple clickthrough wizard.

Windows Installer Wizard

Furthermore, Windows would ask you to enter the product key for your license. If you already have a product key, then you can enter the same else click on the “I don’t have a product key” option to buy a new one.

Enter Windows Product Key

After the product key has been verified, you can just select the partition or drive where the fresh copy of Windows 10 would be installed.

Locate Windows Installation Source

Step 4: Set up the newly installed Windows 10

That’s it! After entering all the details and setting up your preferences, you can wait for the installer to complete the process. In the end, you can choose to restart your computer with the fresh copy of OS installed.

Restart Windows After Installing

That’s it! You can now set up your system the way you like by following another quick wizard.

Windows Installed Successfully

Read More: How to install Windows 10 with USB

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Pro Tip: Use Wondershare Recovery Data Recovery to Restore your Lost Data

Chances are that while reinstalling Windows 10, you can end up losing some of your important files. In this case, you can use Wondershare Recoverit Data Recovery to get back your lost, deleted, or unavailable content after reinstalling Windows 10.

  • Recoverit Data Recovery is extremely easy to use and can help you get back your photos, videos, documents, or any other data type.
  • The application has one of the highest success rates in the industry and will let you preview your files before restoring them.
  • You can select any partition or folder to scan or extract your lost data from the entire drive. There is also an option to scan an external source (like SD cards or hard drives).
  • There are several inbuilt filters in Recoverit Data Recovery to help you search your lost files based on numerous factors.
  • You can get your lost data back under every possible scenario like accidental deletion, formatting of the drive, Recycle Bin deletion, or other unforeseen scenarios.

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After reading this guide, you would be able to reinstall Windows 10 without its CD or USB as well. Besides providing a stepwise tutorial on how to reinstall Windows 10 without USB/CD, I have also included a guide on how to do the same using the installer media. Though, to make your job easier and retain your data, you can consider taking its backup in advance. Even if you don’t have a backup and have lost your data in the process, then Recoverit Data Recovery can help you restore your lost files as well.

Recoverit author

Theo Lucia

chief Editor

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